


Swear On the Sun

by blommowitch



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Universe Alterations, WIP, stucky au, this fic is what I wish aos could be
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-12
Updated: 2016-03-16
Packaged: 2018-05-19 22:11:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5982478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blommowitch/pseuds/blommowitch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Daisy came to St. Agnes, she made a friend. A friend who changes her life forever.</p><p>A story about love, and sisterhood, and choices.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is completely Anna's fault.
> 
> This fic started as just a prompt, but it has grown into something more. It's what I wish that Agents of SHIELD, this show that keeps sidelining and killing off woc could be. Please review to give me motivation to continue this.

Mary Sue Poots was sad. Her room wasn’t bad, but the window didn’t get any sun. She could faintly hear the other children laughing from her bed. She looked up at the white roof and sighed.  
  
If God were real, why did he have to make nuns so mean? They’d put her in her room again, which made the third time this week! She hadn’t even _done_ anything this time. Well, anything bad. All she’d done was to push David. It hadn’t even _hurt_ for him, but the nuns had told her that she’d behaved badly and had to be punished for it.   
  
_It was his own fault,_ she thought angrily. She was the only one who’d seen when David had ground his heel down on the new kid’s little gold ring. Mary Sue didn’t know what it was for, but she knew that anything that glittered was precious. The gold had glittered just like the dark-haired girl’s tears, and Mary had seen how much she wanted to fight for it. Getting in trouble in the first week gave you a bad reputation with the nuns, though. Mary Sue had seen way too many kids being disliked by the nuns just because they’d made the mistake of fighting instead of fleeing. So, she’d done what anyone would have done, really. All it had taken was a push, and the dark-haired girl was after the ring in a second. But, of course, the nuns had only seen David on the floor and Mary Sue standing over him. So here she was.   
  
Thinking of David, Mary’s blood started to boil again. She huffed and flipped over on the bed, crinkling the sheets. _Why does he always pick on the kids with brown eyes?_ She knew that no one would believe her if she said so, but it was true. He’d singled her out the first time he came, and then others. Mary didn’t remember them very well. Sometimes they were chosen, sometimes not. Usually not. She’d overheard one of the nuns saying that brown eyes was proof that a child was nefarious. She didn’t know what it meant, but she knew it was bad.  
  
Suddenly, the door opened, and Mary Sue turned towards the door warily. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be one of the nuns coming to chastise her again. Her feet almost reached the floor as she sat up on the bed. Not with a great bang, just a little at a time, letting a little sunlight in with every inch. It spilled over on the white, bare floor and almost reached Mary’s foot. She stood up.  
  
”If you want to come in, you can always open the door for real. The polite thing to do is to say hello, after that.” she said, and waited in anticipation. The door opened properly, and there she was! The new girl. Her T-shirt had a owl on it, with sparkles around its feathers. Her hair was up in a ponytail now.  
  
”Hello.” she said simply. Under Mary’s gaze she twisted a little on the spot. ”I just, um, wanted to say thanks. For getting the ring back.” Mary relaxed and smiled. ”It’s no problem. He always messes around with people,”  she said. Silence descended on them again. The kid gestured towards Mary’s room. ”So, um, can I come in?” Mary pretended to think about it. ”You know what?” she asked, taking a few steps forward. ”You can come in if you give me your name.” She stuck out her hand, like the nuns did, feeling very adult. ”I’m Mary Sue,” she added, and (as usual) shuddered inside at the name.   
  
The girl stuck her hand out as well. ”I’m Kara Lynn Palamas. Kara for the coast.” She scrunched her nose up. ”Or at least my mom always says so.” Mary Sue frowned - that didn’t make any sense. She couldn’t help the question: ”You have a mom?” Kids whose parents were alive didn’t usually end up at the orphanage - or at least they didn’t speak of them with the reverent tone that the girl - Kara - used.   
  
Kara’s face fell. ”Right. I meant she always _said_ so.” She scuffed her foot against the floor and sniffed a bit. ”It’s hard to get used to,” she added quickly. Mary Sue nodded. She didn’t have the same problem, not at all, but she could empathise. Even though her parents hadn’t wanted to know her, she got it, a bit. She knew how it felt to lose things and forget. She nodded, and jumped up on the bed again, waving for Kara to do the same. The bed creaked slightly as two girls sat on it’s tiny frame. ”Think it’ll break,” Kara joked, giving Mary a little push. She giggled. It was funny, but just because of what they both knew: St Agnes was not known for its money, that was sure. Suddenly Kara shifted towards her. ”Want to see my ring? Properly this time, like it’s supposed to be.” Mary nodded, and the strangest thing happened. As Kara picked it up from her pocket, a gold chain that Mary hadn’t seen before fell out, with an even bigger ring at the end. It glittered in the sunlight streaming from the still open door. She reached out a hand. ”What’s that?” she asked, genuinely curious. She’d just thought that it was a normal earring, but now it looked like an earring. ”What’s the chain for?” she asked.   
  
Kara let the piece of jewellery rest in her hands. Then, slowly, she put the smaller ring in her ear and the bigger one in her nose. The gold fit her in a way that the old T-shirt didn’t, and for one second, made her look like a goddess. Mary couldn’t help but hold back a sigh of jealousy. Her mom hadn’t given _her_ anything... besides, gold could be useful. She didn’t know for what yet, but she just knew. ”It’s really pretty,” she offered instead of her thoughts. Kara smiled. ”I know, right? But I don’t want to have it out too much - the other kids could steal it.” She carefully unhooked it and let it rest in her hands again. They spent a second looking at it, before Kara’s face brightened again. ”I know!” she announced. ”You’ll keep it safe for me. You have your own room, and the other kids don’t seem to bother you.” She pushed the nose ring into Mary’s hand.  
  
Mary felt the panic rising. _Her_ , taking care of something important and valuable as this? No way. No way. ”But I won’t be able to keep it safe - I keep moving from home to home! Besides, this is yours. It’s from your mom,” she finished gently, pushing it back into her hands, cradling them around it. Kara looked down at their hands. ”Do you have anything from your mom?” she asked, tilting her head. Mary felt the blush of embarrassment creeping up her cheeks. She shook her head. ”Well then, we’ll share this! Sometimes you will keep it safe for me, and sometimes I will keep it safe for you. What do you think?” Mary Sue considered this. It was tempting to have something that was her own, but also someone else’s. It was proof of some connection, proof that she existed in relation to someone else. It was this that finally convinced her. ”I say yes. But we have to swear on it. We have to swear to keep it safe, and to... to be sisters.” Mary Sue had never had any family, at least not someone that wanted to know her. But to have this, to have someone who you _chose..._ Mary wanted it, and wanted it bad.  
  
At the last word, Kara’s face lit up like a lantern. ”Yeah! Sisters!” she said eagerly, bouncing slightly up and down on the bed. ”But what should we swear on?” Mary thought. Swearing on God was useless -  if he existed, he also chose not to give them a real family, so. Swearing on blood felt overdramatic, and also unpractical. She looked around the room to find something to swear on, and her gaze fell on the patch of sunlight streaming through the door. ”I know!” It burst out of her. ”We’ll swear on the sun. Because even if we can’t see it, it’s always there, and it always will be.” The nuns had taught her that, but who cared?   
  
Kara nodded appreciatively. She stood up from the bed, and dragged Daisy along with her, until they stood in the sunlight. ”Right, so we cross hands - like this - and then we say: ’I swear on the sun that she is my sister. I swear on the sun that I’ll keep it safe.” Mary Sue felt her palms beginning to sweat, but this was a big moment. She was getting a family. She adjusted her hands slightly, crossed her arms and let Kara drape the nose ring over her hands, so that finally, their hands were clasped together, and the gold chain creating two triangles between them. Mary took a deep breath, and together they recited. ” I swear on the sun that she is my sister. I swear on the sun that I’ll keep it safe.” Their voices blended together, only stumbling slightly over the formal words. When it was finished, they looked at each other, and fell into fits of giggles, the solemnity of the situation getting too much. They plunked themselves down on the bed. Mary sighed dramatically. ”Well, I guess that I should ask the nuns if it’s okay to come out of my room now, as I’m such a good little Mary Sue.” She couldn’t help shaking her head slightly at her own name. Kara looked her up and down. ”You really don’t look like a Mary Sue,” she confided. ”I don’t feel like one either,” Mary Sue said. ”Some day, some day I’ll find my own name. I don’t know where, but it’s out there somewhere.” Kara nodded. ”Some day, when I’m grown, I’ll do good. Maybe I’ll be a doctor, or a volunteer, or something. I’ll do good.” As the two girls lay on the bed and planned out their future together, Mary Sue couldn’t help but think that pushing David and getting grounded was one of the better choices she’d made in her entire life.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short one, I know.

The familiar three knocks broke the silence in the van, and Skye looked up from her computer, momentarily disoriented. The numbers on her screen still ran quickly, but Skye left the table and opened the door.

Kara’s hair was the first thing she noticed; it was much shorter than it had been, the black curls only reaching the shoulders of her lilac blouse. Skye tackled her in a hug, avoiding the big bad on Kara’s right shoulder. ”Hi, stranger! You’re late!” she admonished. Kara hugged back and laughed. ”You can’t be late for a sleepover, Skye. It’s still light outside.” Skye rolled her eyes, and stepped back into the van, making sure not to hit her head on the doorway on the way in. Kara, of course, had no such issues, being only 5'5. The peach coloured floor was fairly clean for once, and Kara dumped her bag in the sofa and slumped down beside Skye. ”What’s with the walls of this place?” she asked. To prove her point, she stretched her hand up and grabbed a handful of news clippings. The walls were practically covered in them, as well as bills, passwords and red marker. One said ”HERO KID SAVES FAMILY”, and Kara raised an eyebrow.

Skye blushed. ”Kara, you know that S.H.I.E.L.D is hiding things! It’s our job to give that information to the public.” She tried to grab the newspaper clipping back, but Kara held on. ”Aha. That’s why there’s a picture of Natasha Romanoff up here too. Admit it! The Rising Tide is just an excuse to fangirl about superheroes,” she said and looked Skye up and down. ”No, it’s not!” Skye assured her. She twisted uncomfortably in the sofa. ”You know that it’s more than that,” she said, and then abruptly quieted. She seemed to think for a moment, and then pasted on a bright smile. ”Anyway! Enough of my sad life! What do you want for dinner?” she twittered. Skye made a move as to get up to the kitchen, but Kara’s hand dragged her back down. ”No, none of that with me. I know you, Skye. This is bothering you.”

Skye immediately lost her smile. She dragged her hand through her hair and sighed. ”I just - I just know that my parents are out there. Or at least the answers to them. But I just _can’t find them_ ,” she emphasised, and started to tap her leg. Kara could sympathise. Her mom was dead, sure, but at least she knew why, how, and her history. She could say ”amma” and her nose ring was safely tucked away in the van. Skye had nothing - not even a last name. Kara put an arm around Skye’s shoulders. ”You still have me!” she said brightly. Skye lit up. ”Yeah.”

They sat in silence for a minute before Kara jumped up. ”Anyway! You were saying something about dinner?” She stood and reached out a hand to Skye. Suddenly, it seemed as if the entire world was made up of this one image. Kara, with her hair looking almost blue in the late sun streaming in from the window. Her smile and outreached her hand felt like a metaphor for Skye’s entire life. _Even when I had nothing I had Kara._ Skye smiled back and took her hand. ”How do you feel about noodles?”


	3. Chapter 3

As her fingers smattered over the keyboard, Skye felt a rush of irritation. The clock quite clearly showed 13:23, and the salesguy had promised her to Skype at 13:10. Rumours were that banks all over the US were close to a collapse, and if that were the case, the Rising Tide could sneak in and get the information they needed without being noticed. P _lus, rerouting a few million dollars to certain charities wouldn’t hurt,_ Skye thought and smirked to herself. But of course, it all depended on whether or not the information was legit. If it wasn’t, they’d be caught red-handed. She tapped her fingers against her laptop. _Why isn’t he calling?_ She’d even made the van fancy and everything; cleaning up the mess left over from last night’s sleepover with Kara, thrown out the old noodle boxes and shuffling all of her junk to the far side of the van to make her side cleaner. Skye could see Kara now, her hair spread out on a pillow like a halo against the pillow. That was the only part of her that resembled an angel, though. She was lying curled up against the little sofa, various adapters lying scattered around or even on her. _Thank God for Kara being hobbit-sized._  
  
A dripping sound broke the silence in the van. Kara started turning around in the covers, and Skye looked back at her computer, a familiar blue awaiting her. She immediately sat up straighter, brushed out a few crinkles in her shirt before she accepted the call.   
  
”Hello,” a voice from her computer said. Skye could see herself in the little square at the bottom left of her screen, but the person on the other end of the call had apparently chosen to have his screen blacked out. _Well, most people who are selling information about corporations for money don’t exactly want to broadcast themselves,_ Skye reassured herself. She cleared her throat. ”Hello. Do you have the information that was paid for?” She crossed her fingers out of the camera’s view. She’d paid nearly 500 bucks for it, so he’d better fulfil his end of the deal.   
  
The man (because it was definitely a male voice) gave a quick snort, and it echoed through Skype. It reverberated in the speakers, and Skye quickly lowered the volume as to not wake Kara up. ”You’ll get the information in the Broadway bar, at 13:30, at the Orpheum theatre, in LA. I’ll be there - just make sure that you are too,” the voice admonished, before ending the call. Skye barely had time to open her mouth in protest - _this wasn’t the deal!_ \- before Skype asked her if she’d had any problems with her call. ”Yeah, an asshole,” she muttered to herself, before vindictively clicking ”Major problems” and shutting down Skype.   
  
She closed her laptop and looked back at her van, her home, with Kara still half-sleeping. _Well, Orpheum theatre - Kara’s going to love that!_ She put her laptop on her side of the sofa and quickly grabbed Kara’s sheets, exposing her to the cold air in the van. It was winter, after all, and the van didn’t exactly have good heating. Kara squirmed and opened her eyes. ”Hey, not fair!” she cried out, blinking and sitting up, trying in vain to grab the covers back. Skye held on. ”Kara, you’re going to love this. Guess where we’re meeting up to get the information!” she asked excitedly. Kara stood up and started changing out of her pyjamas. She pulled a white T-shirt over her head and glared at Skye. ”I have no idea, just that it’s not enough to compensate me for you stealing my sleep in,” she grumbled. Skye rolled her eyes and sat down on the messy bed. ”You’re spoiled. You know that I always get up at 8 o’clock sharp.” She paused. ”Well, nine o’clock. Earlier than you o’clock. So get up, nerd! We’re going to Orpheum theatre!” Kara shot up straight and her eyes started shining. ”No way, Skye. You’re joking.” Skye shrugged. ”Yeah, well, the guy who I talked to was an asshole who didn’t want to give me the info unless it was face-to-face, and we’re not actually going to be inside the theatre, but whatever. Let’s go to a fancy bar!” she finished and stood up, trying to make the bed, or rather, fold up the sheets on the minuscule sofa.   
  
Kara swung her hair up into a ponytail, pulled the pillowcases of the pillows, folded them, received   
the rest of the sheets from Skye and put them neatly in a cupboard under the sink. In the cupboard, both Kara’s nose ring and toothbrush lay, a little wilted after having to be crowded with the sheets.   
  
Skye pulled out her own and some toothpaste and jumped up on the kitchen sink. ”Did you know,” Kara began, toothbrush in her right hand, ”that Orpheus main instrument was the lyre?” Skye gurgled water to get the toothpaste out. ”And that when he traveled on the Argonaut,” Kara paused to spit some herself, ”he played the lyre so beautifully that he even drowned out the sirens?” Skye pulled on her Dr Martens and grabbed her helmet while Kara did the same. She continued: ”His lyre was a gift from Apollo, the god of music in Ancient Greece.” They both stepped out of the van and into the fresh air, blinking in the sudden sunlight. Skye took a deep breath before locking the door to the van. Kara had already pulled out her bike.  
  
”His music was so beautiful that he could even charm living things into being alive!” she continued, waiting for Skye to hop on her bike. As she did, they both took off into the LA traffic. ”But the best thing is this-” Kara tried to say, but she was interrupted by Skye’s groan. ”God, you’re such a nerd! Is there no limit to your encyclopaedic knowledge of Ancient Greece?” she teased Kara, narrowly avoiding a crash with a speeding car. ”But the best thing is this,” Kara continued again, at a much higher volume, ”that when his wife died, he actually sang his way all the way to hell!” Skye looked interested for the first time. ”Seriously?” she asked, making a left turn. Kara sped up to come next to her. ”Yeah! And he asked Hades, the Lord of the Dead, if he could have his wife back. Hades actually agreed, but under one condition,” she said breathlessly, pulling to a stop. They were at the Orpheum theatre, with just a block left before they were at the bar.  
  
They locked their bikes and just looked at the building for a minute. Skye could almost see Kara beginning to salivate over the brightly coloured letters that read ”Orpheum”. She suddenly felt that it had gone quiet between them. ”So what was the condition?” she prompted. Kara tore herself away from the building and looked back at Skye. The wind was playing with her hair, making it twirl under the helmet. ”Right. The condition was that he could lead his wife back to life, but he had to promise not to look back at her, or make sure that she were there.” They started walking across the street to reach the Broadway bar. ”But of course, in the last second he looked back, and then he lost her, forever,” Kara finished. She frowned. ”And I think that he was torn apart by dogs later.” Skye grimaced. ”Well, that wasn’t a very happy story,” she remarked. She looked back at Kara again. ”Why are all great stories about love tragedies?” Kara pondered this. ”Maybe because no great love story is great without its obstacles. Maybe because humans sometimes aren’t enough to overcome them,” she said.   
  
Skye felt a shiver run down her back. She looked at Kara and took her hand. ”But we will, right? We can overcome anything,” she said confidently. Kara laughed. ”Of course! Like the sun, yeah?” she said, and pointed to the sky where the sun was shining brightly. They smiled at each other.  
  
Skye opened the door, and was immediately overwhelmed by the grandeur of the place. Red velvet, silver tables, a bar disk of mahogany? _Not bad._ She cast a glance towards Kara, and it seemed as if she too was slightly overcome. Skye cleared her throat to rid herself of the feeling. ”What are we having?” Kara was shaken from her daze, and looked at the menu. ”You know what? I’ll just have a water - this place isn’t exactly vegetarian.” She grimaced. Skye felt a rush of empathy; what was it with America and meat? She nodded. ”I’m just gonna have some water as well. Hopefully we won’t have to wait long,” she said as they sat down at the counter.  
  
Forty-five minutes later, both of their water bottles gone, Skye was getting impatient. Not that this guy had a great track record of keeping time - but come on. 45 minutes? The clock was ticking towards 14:15 by now. She sighed dramatically. ”You know what?” she said and turned to Kara. ”Let’s just go. It’s not like I can’t get the information from someone else.” Kara looked around and shrugged. ”Well, I’m fine with that. This place is fancy, but I’m kind of tired of the view. They don’t even have lyre imagery in the decor!” she complained as they left their seats and threw their bottles in he trash can.  
  
Skye pulled open the door and enjoyed the feeling of fresh air and sunlight for a second, before closing the door behind Kara. As they started walking towards their bikes, Skye was about to put on her helmet, but a flash of black caught her attention. You didn’t grow up in foster care and not have quick reflexes, after all. Before she could blink, a man had his hand over Kara’s mouth. Skye’s mind flashed back to the time when she was eight, at the Anderson house (her fourth home? Fifth?) when the husband had banged her head against the living room wall. She felt the same disorientation now that she did then - even though it wasn’t even happening to her. She could see Kara screaming, her reflexes kicking in to tuck herself into a ball and send the man flying over her shoulder. Skye felt as if her muscles had been delayed, as if she were swimming through syrup. All around her, people were panicking, and a black van pulled up on the sidewalk, scattering people as it went.   
  
Two new men were stepping out of the van and coming closer, and suddenly Skye heard two gunshots. This finally broke her out of her trance and she looked wildly around for the shooter. Suddenly her gaze fell on Kara. A red mark bloomed on her shoulder, destroying her white T-shirt. Kara fell to the ground. Skye’s legs started working again. She ran to Kara, dropped down to her knees and held her upright. ”Kara? Kara, look at me. Kara!” she yelled frantically. Kara’s gaze was dropping, not quite there, and her body was so lifeless. Suddenly, Kara looked up and smiled. ”Love you, sister. Like the sun,” she said, before her body gave out and Skye was carrying Kara’s entire weight. ”Kara! No no no, please, Kara, please wake up, please please please...” Skye looked around wildly for someone to help her, but she saw no one that could help. The men in black suits started moving towards her, and she felt the panic rising. Kara’s body was heavy, and she couldn’t... _I can’t feel her heartbeat._ ”Kara, _wake up!_ ” she yelled. But Kara was as unresponsive as stone. Her dark hair was fanned out behind her, and the blood was a sharp explosion of colour against her shirt.  
  
One of the men grabbed Skye from behind. His hand was huge, and in it he had soaked a small towel. Skye smelled the scent and immediately know what it was. _No, no, no! I’m not going to be knocked out!_ She tried scratching his hand, biting and kicking, but nothing worked. The towel was soaked through and his hand was so big... She fought for consciousness, but all she could do was give a final glance towards Kara’s dead body. _Kara’s dead body. Kara’s dead body..._  
  
When she woke up, the van and the men in black were gone. And so was Kara.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off: this fic now skips to the beginning of season 3, because I don't want to rewrite them, I just want to get angry at s3. And to rewrite those would be a big responsibility that I just don't want. So yeah. We went from pre s1 to 3x01. Sorry about that.
> 
> Secondly, I have made three decisions about this fic as I watched the last episode of AoS.
> 
> Number One: I'm a girl in a world where my only job is deal with whites; my people have no voice so I'm the one who has represent us all. And I am gifted with abilities and I'm not gonna waste 'em on whites, and Lincoln is douche-y. Ha! That means he's not appearing in this.
> 
> Number Two: AoS is after money and nothing else in this world, I'd have to be naive to agree with that, maybe that is why this whole fic will only center us. Nice going Anna, you were right, it's time to fuck this show up.
> 
> Number Three: I know AoS like I know my own mind, you will never find a show as unreliable and unkind, if I tell myself it's great I will only be wearing a blind, it's time to say I distrust you and that I'm resigned. But when I fantasize at night it's this fic I see, as I romanticize what might've been if Daisy was free. Free from white men and pain; only the beautiful Kara and tea.
> 
> (aka no, Lincoln won't be appearing here, unless it's as a Pakistani doctor worried about making his parents proud while helping out to shock someone in the background once in a while. Why is Static Quake like this. Why can I ship Daisy with no one but May or Simmons.)

As Daisy sat down on the bed, she felt her back relax. It had been a long day, and Joey had been in such distress. At least now he was calm, or rather calm enough to work through the situation. _He’s going to have to go a few rounds with Andrew before being cleared for my team. The hypothetical team._ Daisy sighed and tapped her fingers on her beer bottle, letting the alcohol burn down her throat and maybe let some inhibitions go. Joey shifted a bit on the bed, and opened his mouth to say something - but something on the TV caught his attention. ”I may have had my life altered forever, but man, at least I’m not in that situation,” he said and nudged Daisy to pay attention to the TV. Her head snapped up and her eyes and ears focused on what the TV presenter was saying.  
  
”A new serial killer is on the loose. Three bodies were found in an apartment in Brooklyn, and the killer left this mysterious message behind, but despite this, police have found no trace of the criminal,” the lady in the suit said on the TV. She pointed to the screen behind her to show a picture of the crime scene, and Daisy felt the breath leave her body. _Alisha!_ Her red hair was fanned out behind her, and the bodies of two other people were lying beside her. Above them, on the wall, was a crudely drawn yet familiar octopus, and just three words. _”They were unclean.” God, I’m going to be sick. More Inhumans dead. Because of Hydra._ As Daisy stared at those three words carved into the wall on the television, she let her hand travel to her throat and grip her mother’s charm tight. _Mom, what would you do?_ She took a deep breath. _They were my responsibility._ It was this final thought that spurred her into action. She rose from the bed, brushed some dust off her trousers and tried to smile apologetically at Joey.  
  
”Joey, I’m really sorry, but I need to take care of this.” She could see Joey’s forehead crinkle in alarm. ”You don’t think - you didn’t know those people, did you Daisy?” he asked quickly, starting to rise as well. She waved her hand and motioned for him to sit down. ”No, I didn’t. But this is more than me,” she said firmly, even though her insides were still in knots. She faked a stern look. ”All that you need to worry about is adjusting right now - and maybe start preparing for the shrink. He’s the nicest person you’ll ever meet, which is what makes you scared.” Joey nodded, and Daisy all but ran from the room. _I need to find someone. Does everyone know? And just when we thought Hydra was gone..._  
  
She found Jemma in the usual place. The lab was brightly lit, and Daisy blinked a little to let her eyes adjust to the harsh light. She could see Jemma tapping away on the computer, and shone up when she saw Daisy walking towards her. ”Daisy! How is Joey? Settling in?” she said and reached out to give her a hug. Daisy accepted it, but only for a moment. She could feel the energy in her body thrumming, wanting to be let out, wanting to do something, anything.  
  
”Hydra’s back. And they’ve killed again. Inhumans this time. ” Her voice felt hoarse, even though she hadn’t done anything to strain it. She could see the effect this had on Jemma, see as the realisation settled in, see as her face closed. ”Are you sure?” she said quietly. ”Are you sure that it’s Hydra? It could just be a murderer, someone without motives.” Daisy started shaking her head. ”Yes, I’m sure. They carved an octopus into the wall, Jemma, I’m pretty damn sure.” Her voice started to rise, and the thrumming in her body went up another frequency. She _needed_ to let this out.  
  
Jemma lifted a hand towards her again. ”Daisy, calm down. And even if it is Hydra, you don’t have to blame yourself for this. It’s Hydra who are responsible for this, not you.” she asserted, stading up straighter as she said it, and even though the kindness in her voice was obvious, Daisy couldn’t help but react. ”Not my responsibility? Of course they’re my responsibility, Jemma! _I’m_ the one who dropped the crystals in the water, _I’m_ the one who’s responsible for the Afterlife being destroyed! My mother spent her entire life dedicating herself to that place, so that Inhumans could be safe. And  now she’s dead. And I owe it to her to _fix this!_ ” She felt her voice raise a few decibels, she saw Jemma flinch, and she couldn’t help it - she had to let it out. Just a bit. She raised her left hand, and heard the sound of glass all around her. _Focus_. She listened to one, only one glass, and pushed.  
  
The sound of glass breaking brought her back to the present. She could hear the crystal decanter breaking, the lamp, the glasses at Afterlife and the glass in the lab shattering at the same time. _Stupid, stupid, stupid! Now they’re going to throw-_ Jemma’s voice broke her reverie. ”Daisy? I’m here. I love you. It’s just a glass.” And suddenly she found herself in Jemma’s arms again, the energy slowly fading away. She was hyperaware of everything - the feel of Jemma’s cardigan, the raw light in the lab, her back aching slightly. Daisy breathed deeply, just to feel the air pass through her lungs, and heard Jiaying's voice as from afar. _It’s not something to be afraid of._ Jemma’s arms were tight around her.  
  
Suddenly she stepped out of the embrace, dropping her arms as she looked Jemma in the eyes. ”I’m sorry about the glass. I’m just a little tense. Tense like a bowstring,” she joked. She could see Jemma relaxing and a smile start to form, and she wished irrationally for Kara, a dead sister from years ago. _She always saw right through me - even though I didn’t always appreciate it._ ”Well,” Jemma said decisively ”now that that’s settled, go and talk to Coulson. We’ll fix this, Daisy. We will.” The scientist looked her up and down. ”And go speak to Andrew. He’ll help.” It was unsaid that if another person had been on the base, she would’ve been in the lab the second the glass broke. But Daisy pushed that out of her mind for now.  
  
”Yeah, I’ll do that. And Jemma? Thanks.” Daisy tried to let her smile show how she’d needed that hug, and she was sure it showed when she got a brilliant one in return.  
  
_I need to find Coulson, to fix this. I need to fix this._


End file.
